Protective roles of melatonin in central nervous system diseases by regulation of neural stem cells |
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| Authors: | Xin Yu Zheng Li Heyi Zheng Jeffery Ho Matthew TV Chan William Ka Kei Wu |
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| Institution: | 1. Department of Dermatology, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, China;2. Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, China;3. Department of Anaesthesia and Intensive Care, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China;4. State Key Laboratory of Digestive Disease, LKS Institute of Health Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China |
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| Abstract: | Neural stem cells (NSCs) are immature precursors of the central nervous system (CNS), with self‐renewal and multipotential differentiation abilities. Their proliferation and differentiation are dynamically regulated by hormonal and local factors. Alteration in neurogenesis is associated with many neurological disorders. Increasing evidence suggests that modulation of NSCs can be a promising therapeutic approach for neural injury and neurodegenerative disorders. Melatonin, a pineal gland‐derived hormone, regulates the neuroimmuno‐endocrine axis and is functionally important to the circadian rhythm, tumour suppression and immunity. In the CNS, melatonin exerts neuroprotective effects in many diseases, such as Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease and ischaemic brain injury. Emerging evidence suggests that it might also mediate such protective action by influencing proliferation and differentiation of NSCs. In this article, we review the current literature concerned with effects of melatonin on NSCs in different physiological and pathological conditions. |
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| Keywords: | differentiation melatonin neural stem cells neuroprotection proliferation |
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